Market Orientation in MSME: A Qualitative Case Study of MSME in Zimbabwe

Abstract

In different sectors and countries, the importance of market orientation has been widely recognised in improving organisational performance in large organisations. However the concept of market orientation is being misunderstood by the Micro Small and Medium Enterprises particularly from developing countries context. These misunderstandings led to this study which mainly focused on examining the understanding of market orientation, antecedents and consequences of market orientation by Micro Small and Medium Enterprises operating in the wood and metal furniture manufacturing industry of Zimbabwe. The research was more qualitative in nature and used face to face interviews to gather insights into the market orientation practices, antecedents and consequences in Micro Small and Medium Enterprises. The study’s results revealed that Micro Small and Medium Enterprises lack greater understanding of the market orientation concept, its antecedences and consequences. This has been revealed by the majority of MSME’s top management not having full support of market orientation and not being risk takers. MSMEs confessed not having marketing budgets, research and development teams, marketing plans and they do not see its importance to the success of their businesses. These enterprises are operating more informally and concentrate on methods of increasing products purchase, increasing market share and customer retention. Basing on these findings, the paper provides some managerial implications, limitations of the study and recommendations for future researches.

Keywords: Market orientation, Qualitative, Micro Small Medium Enterprises, Zimbabwe